with Steve Doane, Chris Umpierre, Lindsay Downey and Christina Cepero

Cox John Cox is the new president of the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce.

Collier economic development could take a big step forward at the County Board of Commissioners meeting next week.

The board is set to approve a new public-private partnership with the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce that will give the chamber much greater responsibilities than in the past. Specifically, the chamber will spearhead marketing and recruitment efforts for the county, among other tasks.

"We're going to foster business relationships and work with the county to spur economic growth," said John Cox, president of the chamber.

While the chamber will bring potential businesses to the table, the county will draft incentives packages and handle regulatory issues he said.

The county's previous public-private partnership, the Economic Development Council, was disbanded in 2011 after lackluster results.

Diversification of the economy has been at the forefront of the economic discussion.

Collier has traditionally relied on three major industries: tourism, development and, to a lesser extent, agriculture.

Another key component has been the services and professionals that support those industries.

Commissioners want this to change. Last week, Commission Chairwoman Georgia Hiller asked the legislative delegation for $2 million to help start a business incubator in the county to help jump-start certain target industries.

Farmers ask state for boost in funding

When the Collier County legislative delegation visited last week, a number of things became evident:

People dislike oil drilling. The members of the Stone Crab Alliance, the homegrown anti-oil group, traveled to both delegation stops to plead for tighter regulations.

It wasn't above and beyond what they've said before, just a new audience. Board of County Commissioners Chairwoman Georgia Hiller piled on, adding potential new oil regulations to the county's priority list.

Lost in the shuffle were the farmers, who asked for additional funding for the Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences at the University of Florida extension in Immokalee. They were looking to continue the work done there to help region farmers.

The center provides research and institutional support for area farmers. Agriculture accounts for 42,681 jobs in Collier, about 23 percent the total, and produces $2.3 billion in revenues, or 16.8 percent of the regions gross regional product, according in IFAS/UF data.

Last year, the extension's budget was slightly more than $1 million, with more than half coming from Collier County.

IFAS/UF estimates that every $1 spent on agricultural research at the extension yields $10 for the community.

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Reporter notebook: Chamber, Collier join up on economic development

Collier economic development could take a big step forward at the County Board of Commissioners meeting next week.